four big must dos for serious affiliate marketersDespite popular belief, affiliate marketing is still a potential goldmine for those willing to put in the work.

In fact, with so many new automation technologies to set up sales funnels and the fact that new avenues to drive affiliate revenue are being discovered daily, it could be argued that now’s the best time to get into the space.

That being said, if you want to make serious income via affiliate marketing, you’re going to have likewise understand how to protect your business both legally and financially. After all, affiliate marketing can represent a hobby; however, if you want to make the most of your efforts you’re going to need to invest some serious time.

So, where do you start?

Keep Your Assets Safe

  • Establish your business as an LLC; this protects you from potential legal snafus that would otherwise personally be liable for
  • Don’t make claims that you can’t actually back up: while it’s natural to want to hype up your affiliate products, false claims often aren’t protected by your affiliates’ terms of service
  • Include disclaimers on-site and avoid any sneaky sales tactics which could effectively get you shut down

Understanding these three points and taking action to avoid any legal trouble should be your top priority as an affiliate marketer; unfortunately, a lot of newbies screw this up.

Invest in the Best Products

You should be able to stand behind the products you push to your audience. For starters, this ensures that you keep your claims level with your audience and actually create content you believe in. Secondly, well-performing products generally have a strong affiliate payout and have potential name recognition for buyers.

That being said, you should strive to diversify your affiliate offers in case of an emergency or one of your products suddenly falls off the market. Likewise, make sure that any affiliate you use on site makes sense with the scope of your content (think: don’t push a weight loss affiliate on a site for tech bloggers).

Focus on Metrics and Scalability

Seeing success as an affiliate takes time unless you’re relying on paid ads. With this in mind, however, pay close attention to your analytics and only rely on tactics which you can realistically scale. Instead of needlessly dumping money into ads to try to gain traction, consider the benefits of an aggressive social presence combined with organic SEO as means of driving traffic and building links when you’re just starting out.

Network With Caution

When it doubt, it’s always a great idea to network with other affiliate marketers to uncover potential opportunities. Don’t make the mistake of falling in with scammers, though. If someone is pushing an offer that seems too good to be true or wants to ring you in to some black hat tactics, it’s best to just say “no” and move on. Remember: you’re only as good as the company you keep.

Becoming a successful affiliate marketer requires you to pay attention to the fine details. From your legal representation and strong affiliates to analytics and networking opportunities, there’s certainly a lot to juggle. Once you’ve gotten these elements under control, however, the sky’s the limit for your affiliate empire.